MSCM Newsletter Summer 2013

Master of Science in Conflict Management Newsletter ™

Summer 2013

Letter from the Director

In thhis Issue:

Colleagues, alumni, friends, and supporters, It is difficult for me to believe that it has been a year since I first arrived as Director of the MSCM Program at Kennesaw State. Although, as I consider all the things that have happened in the last 13 months, I am in awe of the energy of the program students, alums, faculty, and staff!

A look back over the last year of newsletters shows that faculty have had books and articles published, staff have created a new partnership and won awards, students have completed interesting internships and successfully graduated the program, alumni have been promoted and advanced their careers in exciting new jobs, and the program has taken exhilarating international and domestic study trips to Cuba, New Orleans, and Florida. All of that is in addition to the regular hum of our weekend classes! No wonder MSCM continues to be one of the most productive graduate programs at KSU. Just wait until you see what we’ve been up to this summer….

This fall I have the privilege of welcoming the students of Cohort XV into our program. That number is a significant milestone for the program that deserves some special recognition from everyone. Welcome to our community Cohort XV! I also have the privilege of welcoming a new faculty member into our program, Dr. Paul Story. Dr. Story is jointly appointed with our program and the Psychology Department. He has a PhD from Virginia Commonwealth University and his research interests include emotional intelligence, motivation, and group dynamics. We believe that Dr. Story will be a great fit for our program and bring some needed capacity and unique expertise to our conflict management team. Welcome Paul!

Featured Articles ...2-3 Announcements...4-6 Upcoming Events...7 Faculty Accomplishments...8

As we start the fall semester, we wish Cohort XIV well as they head out into the community and world to do internships, research projects, and training. For a sampling of some, read on. We also look forward to Minneapolis for the Association for Conflict Resolution Conference and Ireland/Northern Ireland for our international field experience trip.

As always, please contact us with news, events, job opportunities, or other information. A significant strength of our community continues to be our relationships to one another.

All the best, Sherrill Hayes, MSCM Director

Welcome Cohort XV!

Featured Article Contributed by Natalie Yasson (Cohort XIII) “Assalamu alaikum” “Namaste” “Muraho”. These are just some of the various greetings I am met with each day in my work with the Refugee Services program at Lutheran Services of Georgia, where I currently serve as the Director. I work with clients from Burma, Bhutan, Iraq, Somalia, Sudan, Eritrea and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, among others, and I also manage a staff of twenty people from nine different countries.

Each day is an international adventure, and I never have to set foot on an airplane!

After spending two years working in Botswana as a U.S. Peace Corps volunteer, I moved back to Atlanta and soon joined the Refugee Services team in 2008. Over the past five years, I have worked my way up, and shortly after receiving my MSCM degree from KSU in 2012, I accepted the Director position with Refugee Services. The U.S. Department of State defines a refugee as someone who has fled from his or her home country and cannot return because he or she has a well-founded fear of persecution based on religion, race, nationality, or political opinion. War, and ethnic, tribal, and religious violence are leading causes of refugees fleeing their countries. When refugees come to the U.S. to begin a new life, they face many adjustment challenges, including language barriers, difficulties in accessing services, obstacles to employment, and more. The Refugee Services program’s goal is to empower refugees from arrival to self-reliance, and we do so through multiple service programs. Each year we provide resettlement services to over 500 newly arrived refugees living in Georgia, primarily in the metro-Atlanta and Savannah areas. Additionally, we serve over 1,000 refugees and asylees through programs like extended cultural orientation, social adjustment services, job training, and employment services.

My degree from KSU prepared me for my work in this field, where I manage conflicts among my staff as well as with clients and community stakeholders. In addition to what may be considered typical work conflicts, there are many cross cultural elements that must be considered. Every person and culture has a unique approach to dealing with conflicts. Some clients want to sit and discuss their concerns with me for hours with community elders in the room, while others chose not to bring up their concerns at all and react passive-aggressively until the issue boils over. Some issues may seem minor, while others are more serious—such as local political leaders writing anti-refugee policies and communities acting hostile to newcomers. While there is no one size fits all solution to any of these problems, either large or small, I work towards successfully analyzing the problem using skills I obtained in the MSCM program, and work collaboratively with my team to prevent and manage conflicts within the office and with stakeholders at large.

If you would like more information on how to be involved with refugee resettlement in Georgia, please contact me at nyasson@lsga.org.

Featured Article Undergraduates Learn About Peace & Conflict in Ireland Undergraduate students from across Georgia participated in the summer study abroad program for five weeks in beautiful Waterford, Ireland where I taught courses on International Relations, Peace & Conflict studies. Past trips to the region with MSCM students focused on N. Ireland where ‘ The Troubles’ between the descendants of colonizers (Protestant British) and the colonized (Catholic Irish) led to civil war and violent conflict for decades until the Good Friday Peace Accords led to a cease fire in 1998. This trip focused mostly on the Republic of Ireland, where we learned about the struggle for Irish independence that culminated in independence in 1922, followed by an 11-month civil war. We learned about the Father of the modern peace movement, Daniel O’Connell, who led the fight for Catholic Emancipation which resulted in increased political rights and representation for Catholics. His techniques of non-violent mass protest later inspired Ghandi and Martin Luther King, Jr. For the first time, I was in Belfast during the anniversary of the conquering of Ireland by William of Orange at the Battle of the Boyne (anniversary is July 12th). Members of the Orange Order and other Protestants celebrate this anniversary with bonfires, fireworks, and marches through both Protestant and Catholic neighborhoods. This year the marches sparked violent rioting and hundreds of extra soldiers had to be brought in from England to restore order. The violence is unfortunate as it drove tourists away during what should be the busiest part of tourist season in an area with high unemployment and a depressed economy.

The peace remains quite fragile in N. Ireland and there are fears that these annual parades could reignite the conflict. Peacemakers we met are continuing to hold cross-community dialogues (cross-community= Catholic/Protestant) to build understanding between groups who continue to live highly segregated lives.

While in Ireland our students interviewed locals to learn their perspectives on current political issues such as the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Snowden case, and the bugging of EU offices by the CIA which was revealed while we were there. Ireland provides a rich environment in which to learn about the impact of war and peacemaking on the lives of real people. I love learning side-by-side with students on these study abroad experiences.

The students from Cohort XIV can look forward to a wonderful learning experience as they prepare to depart for Ireland and N. Ireland this November, led by our Director, Sherrill Hayes.

Susan Raines

Announcements New Partnership at KSU...!

Dean Robin Dorff, Dr. Sherrill Hayes, Ms. Ansley Wood, Dr. Heather Pincock, Dr. Timothy Hedeen, Dr. Susan Raines,

Mr. C. Richard Barnes, and Dr. Charles Amlaner

The College of Humanities and Social Sciences and the Master of Science in Conflict Management at Kennesaw State University would like to announce the creation of a new Public-Private Partnership between Mr. C. Richard Barnes and Associates (CRBA) and the Masters of Science in Conflict Management program. Richard Barnes is President of C. Richard Barnes and Associates, LLC. Mr. Barnes has an extensive career in labor-management relations as a negotiator, mediator, Deputy Director, and Director of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS). President Bill Clinton appointed Mr. Barnes Director of the FMCS in January 1998, a position he held until June 2002. He established C. Richard Barnes and Associates, LLC in 2005, as a unique organizational consulting firm to provide dispute resolution services, dispute resolution systems design, workforce training and development and executive coaching to a cross section of American industry, labor and service organizations. This partnership will provide benefits for MSCM students interested in understanding complex, multi-party disputes and developing knowledge of workplace and organizational conflict resolution. Mr. Barnes has agreed to serve as an adjunct professor for the program, provide access to high level meditations, facilitations, and trainings, and serve as a direct link for students and faculty to engage and experience conflict management applications in the workplace. The experience and expertise represented in this partnership will further enhance Kennesaw State’s reputation as a premiere center for the study and practice of conflict management.

Both the MSCM program and Mr. C. Richard Barnes are excited to see how this relationship will blossom, and the boundless opportunities that will result from this partnership. For more details please visit, www.crichardbarnes.com or www.kennesaw.edu/pols/mscm/.

Announcements Congratulations!

John Lash (Cohort XIII) was recently named the 2012-2013 MSCM

Outstanding Student of the Year! He did his internship with the Georgia Conflict Center (GCC). Tasks included research for grant proposals, outreach to potential clients, and participation in training. GCC works in conflict skills training and restorative approaches to justice, peacemaking, and discipline.

GCC works throughout the community, including in schools, diversion centers, jails, juvenile court, etc. and with varying populations, including low income, mentally ill, and juveniles. John graduated in December 2012.

Renee Mack Jones (Cohort XIII) was featerured in The Atlanta Tribune.

Announcements Katie Jones (Cohort XIV ) spent ten days in Costa Rica with

Outward Bound Peacebuilding where participants spent seven days backpacking through the rainforest discussing the role of culture in conflict and nature in peacebuilding. The course emphasized experiential peacebuilding and collaboration as well as establishing an international network of peacebuilders. The final day of the course was spent at the University of Peace in San Jose discussing methods for group dialogue. Participants traveled from Ethiopia, Rwanda, Columbia, Dominican Republic, Brazil, and the United States.

Vivien Cervinka (Cohort XIV) will be interning at the “Human Rights

Program” of The Carter Center in Atlanta for fifteen weeks this fall. During her internship she will conduct research on counter-terrorism policy and the role of faith communities in advancing women´s rights in conflict zones.

Furthermore, Vivien will work closely with the Human Rights Director, Ms. Karin Ryan, in coordinating activities that started after the 2013 Human Rights Defenders Forum, which led to substantial follow-up efforts to support activists and religious leaders who are undertaking courageous work in four pillars of women´s rights: physical integrity, family law, political participation and governance, and economic participation (including access to education).

Vivien will also assist in monitoring developments related to the alignment of U.S. counter-terrorism efforts with its human rights commitments.

Alumni & Friends Go to Cuba Dr. Susan Raines is planning a trip to Cuba for KSU Alumni & Friends during KSU’s Spring Break this coming April.

Details have not been finalized but the trip will be approximately 7 days long and cost between $2,200-2,700.

This falls under the “People to People” travel which is allowed by the US State Department. Spouses, friends and other adults are welcome to come, but agenda will include a focus on the US-Cuba diplomatic relationship and the work of peacemakers and ADR practitioners in Cuba. We will see the sights of Havana as well as Vinales National Park.

If you are interested in learning more, please email Dr. Raines at sraines@kennesaw.edu

Upcoming Events Coaching through Conflict: Using the Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Modes Instrument Kennesaw State University-Continuing Education Center September 13, 2013 8:30 am- 5:00 pm Explore the Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Modes Instrument and conflict styles theory as tools for assisting clients with interpersonal conflict. We will discover our personal conflict styles and engage in roleplays. We will also discuss the relationship between conflict styles, behaviors, and various personality assessments. You will leave ready to administer and interpret the Thomas-Kilmann Instrument with your clients. http://www.kennesaw.edu/conflict/training/thomaskilmann/thomas-kilmann-0913.htmlCivil Water, Wind, Waste, and More: Navigating New Tides in Environment, Energy, and Resource Regulation Are you wondering how the 2012 election is going to impact your environmental, energy and resource practice over the next few years? Then you need to join us at the American Bar Association Section of Environment, Energy, and Resources (SEER) Fall Conference at the Hilton in Baltimore on October 9-12, 2013. http://www.americanbar.org/calendar/2013/10/21st_fall_conference.html Association for Conflict Resolution 13th Annual Conference: Making Peace Happen October 9-12, 2013 Minneapolis, MN The conference theme – Making Peace Happen: New Normals – focuses on how we as a field provide ways, through mediation, facilitation, negotiation and other non-adversarial processes, to create new normals in which interactions between parties make peace happen. http://www.acrnet.org/annual2013/ Mediation Training & Practicum Kennesaw State University- Continuing Education Center Civil Mediation Training October 15 - 18, 2013 Tuesday - Thursday: 8:00 am - 5:30 pm and Friday: 8:30 am - 1:00 pm Civil Mediation Practicum October 18 -19, 2013 Friday: 1:30 am - 5:30 pm and Saturday: 8:00 am - 5:30 pm This basic 28-hour mediation workshop focuses on an understanding of the mediation process, communication skills, problem-solving skills, agreement writing, and mediation ethics. Mediation skills are taught in a highly interactive format through short lecture, group discussion, focused exercises, and coached role-play. The workshop is designed to prepare the participant for mediation in civil cases. In addition, this intense four-day experience is designed to hone life skills that can enhance the participant’s ability to interact effectively with others. The workshop meets general mediation training requirements for registration with the Georgia Office of Dispute Resolution. In addition, the workshop is approved for Continuing Legal Education hours (28 regular, 3 ethics, 1 professionalism). http://www.kennesaw.edu/conflict/training/civilmediation/Civil%20Mediation%20Training%20 October%202013.html

MSCM Faculty Accomplishments: Dr. Sherrill Hayes Recently: -Taught CM 7500 Dispute Systems Design and 7600 Study of a Specified Conflict Environment.

- Received a grant through the United States Institute of Peace (USIP) Public Education for Peacebuilding Support initiative, a joint venture between USIP and the Institute of International Education (IIE). His project is entitled “Humanitarian Assistance, Refugees, & Peacebuilding” and will involve a series of three workshops conducted during the fall semester.

- Visited MSCM program partners at the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre and the University of Cape Coast in Ghana in June to scout for a potential MSCM study trip in 2014.

Dr. Susan Raines Recently:

-Taught CM 7230 Intercultural and International Conflict Resolution -Taught 2 courses in the summer study abroad program for undergraduates in Waterford, Ireland: Pols 2250 (Intro to International Relations) and Pols 4490 World Peace in Film & Literature.

-Edited Volume 30 number 4 of Conflict Resolution Quarterly -Facilitated a meeting of the North Georgia Water Resource Agencies group -Mediated for the Paulding, DeKalb & Cobb courts -Served as adjunct faculty for Sullivan University for 1 summer course -Published “Mediation as a Profession: Challenges that Mediators Face” with Sunil Kumar Pokhrel and Jean Poitras in Conflict Resolution Quarterly.

Dr. Timothy Hedeen Recently: -Served as faculty marshal at KSU’s May commencement ceremonies.

-Taught Dispute System Design for Hamline University’s Dispute Resolution Institute in May/ June.

-Traveled 4,400 miles in just under six weeks with his family.

Dr. Heather Pincock Recently: -Taught POLS 4470 “Alternative Dispute Resolution” to KSU undergraduates.

-Worked on “Making Better Citizens? Assessing deliberation’s educative effects” with the support of the CHSS Faculty Summer Research Grant.

The Master of Science in Conflict Management (MSCM) program at Kennesaw State University provides students with the knowledge and skills to manage conflict in today’s challenging environments. MSCM education addresses the issues that divide our world by encouraging communication, fostering positive relationships and developing comprehensive, long-term solutions. Further, it provides a set of tools and a way of thinking that enhances the safety and vitality of our families, communities and workplaces.

To provide submissions to the MSCM newsletter, email Janet McGovern at jmcgove2@kennesaw.edu or call 770-423-6299.